A division bench of the Gujarat High Court issued notice to multiple government authorities on Thursday to form a committee to investigate the death of six labourers at Sachin GIDC in Surat due to inhalation of poisonous gas in January.
The division bench of Chief Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice AJ Shastri kept the notice returnable for June 17, by which time the respondents are expected to respond to the petition, if they wish to.
The petitioner, Paresh Parekh, a Vadodara-based social worker and businessman, has asked for the formation of a committee to investigate the “decades-long scam running in Gujarat of illegal dumping and disposal of hazardous chemical waste of companies for maximisation of profits, and to take steps to curb and avoid frequent recurrence of such incidents” by establishing stringent rules and guidelines to regulate the practise of hazardous waste management by local and international companies.
The petitioner, who compares the Sachin GIDC, Surat incident to the “Bhopal gas tragedy,” has also asked the court to direct the state police to charge the accused persons and directors of the responsible companies, Hikal Ltd, Astec Sciences, and Sangam Enviro Ltd, with murder (IPC section 302) and attempted murder (IPC section 307).
The petitioner is also seeking the court’s direction to invoke Prevention of Corruption Act in the FIR against police officials and other government officials who may be found in the investigation to have colluded with the erring companies and individuals.
According to the petition, Hikal Ltd was previously served with a closure notice by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board in a similar incident in which it was discovered to have illegally dumped and discharged hazardous toxic waste chemical effluents in a Maharashtra river.